Editorial Independence Charter

Editorial Independence Charter

Our commitment to readers, the low-vision community and the integrity of this resource.

LowVisionGuide.org exists to help people with low vision find useful information, services and tools. That purpose can only be served when readers can trust what they read.

This charter explains how we protect our editorial independence, manage commercial relationships and disclose potential conflicts of interest.

Our promises to readers

• Our articles, reviews, comparisons and recommendations reflect our independent judgment.
• Payment, sponsorship, affiliate commissions, supplier relationships and product samples do not determine what we publish.
• Sponsors, affiliates, manufacturers and suppliers do not preview, edit or approve editorial content.
• Commercial partners do not receive advance access to drafts or publication schedules.
• We do not remove or soften accurate criticism because an organization sponsors the site, supplies products or has another business relationship with us.
• Rankings and comparisons are based on disclosed evaluation criteria—not compensation or commercial status.
• We disclose material relationships that could reasonably affect how a reader evaluates our content.
• We correct factual errors regardless of whether the correction helps or harms a commercial partner.
• We do not accept payment for positive reviews, favorable rankings or editorial recommendations.
• We do not publish sponsored articles, native advertising or paid editorial content.

Ownership and commercial relationships

LowVisionGuide.org is owned and operated by Visible Living LLC.

Visible Living LLC also operates VisibleLiving.org, an online retailer of low-vision products and assistive tools. This common ownership creates a potential commercial interest when LowVisionGuide.org discusses products that Visible Living sells.

We manage that interest through the following rules:

• Educational content is governed by editorial standards separate from retail merchandising.
• Product availability or profit margin does not determine our educational conclusions.
• We may recommend a product that Visible Living does not sell.
• We may decline to recommend or may criticize a product that Visible Living sells.
• A link to VisibleLiving.org will be identified when the commercial destination may not otherwise be clear.
• Relevant ownership, retail, supplier or manufacturer relationships will be disclosed within affected content.

LowVisionGuide.org provides education, not individualized medical advice or clinical rehabilitation. Commercial relationships do not change that boundary.

Sponsorship

LowVisionGuide.org may accept financial support from a small number of carefully selected organizations serving the low-vision or blindness community.

Sponsorship supports the operation of the site. It does not purchase editorial influence.

The editorial firewall

Sponsors have no role in:

• Selecting editorial topics
• Setting evaluation criteria
• Writing or editing content
• Reviewing drafts
• Approving publication
• Determining rankings
• Choosing recommended products
• Controlling publication schedules
• Preventing criticism
• Requesting removal or modification of accurate published content

Sponsors must agree to these restrictions before a sponsorship begins.

Sponsor qualification

A prospective sponsor must:

• Operate within or meaningfully support the low-vision or blindness community
• Offer products or services legally available in the markets it serves
• Meet applicable requirements for its product or service category
• Avoid materially deceptive or unsupported claims
• Accept our editorial-independence requirements in writing
• Understand that sponsorship does not guarantee editorial coverage or favorable treatment

We may decline or end a sponsorship when we believe the relationship could damage reader trust or conflict with our mission.

Sponsorship disclosure

Current sponsors are identified on our Sponsors page.

When an article reviews, recommends or substantially discusses a product from a current sponsor, we include a clear disclosure near the beginning of the article.

Standard disclosure:

Disclosure: [Organization name] is a Mission Sponsor of LowVisionGuide.org. Sponsorship does not influence our editorial assessments, recommendations or conclusions.

A disclosure identifies the relationship. It does not replace the editorial firewall.

Affiliate relationships

Some links on LowVisionGuide.org may be affiliate links. If a reader purchases through one of these links, Visible Living LLC may receive a commission without increasing the reader’s price.

Affiliate commissions do not determine:

• Which products we evaluate
• Which products we recommend
• How products are ranked
• Whether limitations or concerns are reported
• Whether a product remains recommended

If the best option for a particular task has no affiliate program, we may recommend it without compensation.

Affiliate links will be disclosed clearly and close enough to the link or recommendation for readers to understand the relationship before making a purchasing decision.

Products supplied for evaluation

A manufacturer, distributor or retailer may lend or provide a product for evaluation.

Receiving a product does not guarantee:

• Publication
• A positive review
• A recommendation
• Inclusion in a comparison
• A particular rating
• Advance notice of our conclusions

When a product was supplied, loaned or provided at a discount for evaluation, we disclose that fact in the resulting content.

We do not accept payment in exchange for a positive review or predetermined conclusion.

How we evaluate products

Evaluation criteria depend on the product and task. Relevant factors may include:

• Intended use
• Magnification and usable field of view
• Image and optical quality
• Lighting and contrast controls
• Physical handling and ergonomics
• Accessibility of controls and instructions
• Setup and learning requirements
• Reliability
• Warranty and customer support
• Price and total cost
• Return conditions
• Privacy and data practices
• Important limitations
• Suitability for different users and environments

A product that works well for one person may not work well for another. We distinguish general product information from individualized clinical recommendations and encourage device trials when practical.

Corrections and disagreements

Organizations may notify us of a possible factual error. We evaluate correction requests on their merits, regardless of sponsorship or commercial status.

When information is materially wrong, we correct it. When the published information is accurate but commercially unfavorable, it remains.

Sponsors and suppliers do not receive a separate appeal process, advance warning or authority over editorial decisions.

Our accountability to the community

LowVisionGuide.org was founded by someone with lived experience of vision loss.

Our readers are people making consequential decisions about health information, rehabilitation, technology, personal finances and daily independence. We do not treat that relationship casually, and we will not exchange reader trust for revenue.

If you believe that we have failed to follow this charter, contact editorial@lowvisionguide.org. Please identify the relevant page, relationship or concern so that we can review it.

Substantive concerns will be documented and evaluated under our editorial correction and conflict-review procedures.

Charter information

• Owner: Visible Living LLC
• Applies to: LowVisionGuide.org editorial content
• Initial effective date: August 2026
• Review cycle: At least annually and whenever the sponsorship or monetization model materially changes
• Editorial contact: editorial@lowvisionguide.org